Chupacabra
Common Parlance: Most commonly called Chupacabra but the slang terms Chupa and Cabra are both prevalent. Taxonomy: Mortalis Formicacruor Life Status: Living Cultural Notes: '''Chupacabra culture is a vibrant and somewhat diverse affair. As a species they originate in South America where they make up the massive majority of the population of several different countries. While there are distinct differences between the various Chupa countries (Hive States) their overall culture is similar enough in most ways that some broad assumptions can be made. Each State is basically the modern equivalent of what are really ancient tribal holdings with several nominally ruled over by a hereditary Monarch (With Teclan having a King, Mayani and Olec a Queen, etc.). In the ancient past all Hive States would have been controlled by some form of Hereditary Royalty, though now the role, where it still exists is mostly a figure head position with true power laying with the congress and senates that operate the true government of the States. This shift to a government more under the control of the people began with the Nation State of Nazca and spread slowly via largely nonviolent revolutions around 1400 AJ. The officially recognized Hive States are: Teclan, Mayani, Nazca, Oltec, Inco, Muisca, and Amazonia. Additionally, smaller States claim a measure of independence while still remaining associated with one or more larger states. Amazonia is treated as a state by the Official Hive State record and compact, but is in fact composed of countless individual tribes inhabiting the Amazon Rainforest, which Amazonia surrounds. Many of the Amazonian tribes are unaware of the wider world and most foreign affairs are handled by a counsel of agents selected by the Hive states to insure the sanctity of the jungle. The first encounter Chupacabra civilizations had with Europeans occurred when the first explorers stumbled upon south America. When diplomacy turned sour and the conquistadors desires for conquest became apparent, they quickly found that firearms did little to help them against the Chupa’s wrath. This led to a streak of violent encounters with Espania that took nearly 100 years to resolve and overcome. Though relations are diplomatically fine now, many Chupa still hold stereotyped views of Espaniards as somewhat stupid, foolish, and ineffectual. Chupacabra culture is a loud boisterous affair awash with color, festivals, and vibrant celebrations. The cities of the Hive States become massive parties on high festival days and are infamously popular places for tourists to visit. The innate wanderlust and curiosity of the Chupa species has led to a strong movement of immigration to other countries, such that Chupacabras are wide spread outside the Hive States. The official language of the Hive States is Meztecho, a dialect distilled from numerous tribal languages and spoken in a vast range of dialects. Most citizens are well versed in English, Spanish is frequently spoken as well (a hold out from early frequent encounters with Espania) though this can vary depending upon which Hive State you are in. Chupacabra immigrants bring their culture with them in force when they settle down and areas boasting a large population of Chupa will quickly become familiar with their traditions. Chupacabra families are tightly knit structures that are strongly tied into the wider Chupa community. Most Chupa view other Chupa more as extended family than anything else, this leads to strong ties extend throughout the community and define many of the core beliefs of Chupa culture. It is impossible to talk about Chupacabra culture without touching upon the indigenous religion of the race. The Chupacabra Blood Faith is almost universally off putting to outsiders. Though a poetic and deeply spiritual belief system it involves a great deal of blood sacrifice. On the holiest of holidays it is not uncommon for a willing volunteer (or many such volunteers) to sever an arm or have an organ removed in sacrifice during the ritual oblations. The regenerative properties of the Chupacabra make such acts of sacrifice and faith significantly less debilitating and dangerous than it would be for others, but this does little to offset the shock value of the unprepared. Not all Chupacabra are especially religious and some immigrants give up practicing the faith after they leave the Hive States, due to a lack of places to properly worship outside of Chupa controlled countries. It is not unheard of for Chupa immigrants pick up a local religion or simply live secular lifes. There do remain minorities that practice the religion in other countries and Zigrouts of Worship are slowly becoming more acceptable and common in the wider world. The Chupa for their part recognize the discomfort that these practices can cause, and usually handle discussions about the faith with delicacy and good cheer, which to their everlasting confusion does little to put others at ease. '''Key Internal Physical Features: *Body formation and systems are strongly indicative of insects. *Chupacabra possess both an outer exoskeletal carapace and an internal skeletal structure. This double anatomy grants Chupacabra's a high level of physical durability. *The digestive system of the Chupacabra is suited to a largely fluid diet consisting of bodily fluids supplemented by soft organ flesh. Other meats beyond organs can be consumed, but their bodies have a more difficult time extracting nutrients from such substances. Chupas are known to consume vegetable matter only rarely, usually in a medical, social, or ritual context. *The musculature of the species owes more to the structure of insects than mammilians, granting the Chupa a degree of strength that is at odds with their small physical stature. *The internal chemical and biological workings of Chupacabras differ from species of Mammalian descent immensely. Due to this they are highly resistant or immune to most forms of transmutable disease and illness that occur in mammalian based strains. For similar reasons, interbreeding between Chupacabras and other species is not possible. *Chupacabras are an egg laying species. Chupa mothers will carry a fertilized egg in their body for a period of 3 months. After this period the mother will lay the egg, which will hatch after an additional period of 6 - 8 months. *Though Chupa brain chemistry and structure are very similar to other species, there are several marked differences. These unique traits tend to be remnants of adaptations required in the early life of the species to facilitate survival. Though they still present to a greater or lesser degree depending on the Chupa, most facilitate their use through the application of Autumnal energy. The most obvious of these features is an intense connection between muscle groups and various autonomic response centers in the brain. The result is that Chupas occasionally react to stimuli before they are consciously aware of it. This adaptation also allows the Chupa to maintain a position of absolute stillness for long periods of time without suffering cramps or wandering focus. The Chupacabra are also known to retain a series of mental structures that appear to be remnants from a time when their species benefitted from a hive mind like structure. Still poorly understood, these structures, while present in all Chupa, can only be accessed through the use of Autumnal energy. It is these neural structure atavisms that allow the Chupa to make use of their Telepathy Horror. *Chupa bodies are possessed of a profound ability for physical regeneration and repair. They have been known to regenerate limbs over a period of one to two years and are capable of surviving substantial bloodloss. Internal organs composed of soft tissues can usually be regenerated in a startling period of time, their failure being made up for by redundant systems in the Chucabra's body. While notably prolific, these capabilities have their limits and lack the near supernatural swiftness sometimes seen in the regeneration of, say, Werewolves. Extensive wounding increases the time required for recovery and if too extensive will overwhelm the system. *Chupa limbs are similar to certain other insects in that if maimed or heavily damaged they will be lost and regrown rather than supported. *Chupa have Insectile antennae on their heads that function as additional sense organs. These structures play a role in both olfactory and auditory sensation as well as in sensing vibration and heat. Females tend to possess longer, more flexible Antennae than males. *Chupa eyes are compound in structure, being composed of many individual lens structures that feed into a single nerve pathway. Chupas are able to see further into both ends of the visual spectrum than most species and with effort can focus their vision on multiple areas at once for short periods. Chupas never require corrective lenses for near or farsightedness, though they do sometimes use glasses to help focus their range of vision, which can become blurred and unfocused with age. *Chupacabras age at a rate comparable to other living species yet live slightly longer than average due to their unusual anatomy. Barring unfortunate circumstances or illness a Chupa can safely expect to live to an average age of 120 to 140 years. External Physical Features: *Chupacabras do not possess external ear or nasal structures. Two nostril slits and spiracles on their torso facilitate respiration, while hearing is accomplished through reverberating pit and chamber systems located in roughly the same anatomic positioning as ears found in beings of mammalian descent. Antennae also play a role in auditory perception. *Musculature is less pronounced than that found in other species due to divergence in anatomy. *Reaction speed is significantly higher than that found in other living species, attributed to a unique structures and systems present in the cerebellum and musculature. *Skin coloration can vary between individuals a great deal ranging from slightly greenish and fawn colored hues, to rarer shades showing more vibrant reds, oranges, or even blues. Color patterns can be present on the exoskeleton, though this is not a universal trait and tends to run in families. *Chupas fall well below the average height and weight ranges of other derivations of the Mortalis Genus. The average Chupacabra stands anywhere between 3 to 4 feet in height with the very tallest specimens reaching 5 feet. Proportionally Chupacabras physically resemble the children of other more average sized Mortalis derivations. *The large compound eyes of the species share similarities with the ocular structures of both insects and mammals. They allow the species impressive visual acuity further into each end of the light spectrum than most other species can see. *Though exceptionally rare, Chupa can be born with insectile wings, an atavism to an earlier evolutionary offshoot. All chupa regardless of their physical expression are born with the vestigial internal structures that once supported winged flight. Though normally quite useless, by employing Autumnal forces Chupa can manifest these limbs as a Horror. *Chupa do not possess fingernails, rather their digits end in chitnous tips. Though not exceptionally sharp Chupa can use this adaptation to find handholds and gain purchase when climbing surfaces such as wood or soft stone. This is a potential indicator of a formerly arboreal nature. Horrors: I. Telepathy: All Chupa retain the now vestigial neurological anatomy that once facilitated their species’ nature as a hive mind. While these structures no longer fulfill that purpose, a Chupa can use Autumnal energy to facilitate those structures and enable a degree of mental communication. Chupa are able to communicate with both Chupacabras and other species using this process, though only another Chupa will be able to respond to the sender mentally, as other races lack the needed structures to mentally broadcast their thoughts. It is claimed that high level prectitioners of the Horror can build a connection strong enough to facilitate two way communications with non-chupacabras. Distance weakens the effect of this Horror and all but the most skilled find it nearly impossible to perform if the sender cannot see their recipient. The concentration required to use this Horror has ensure that it has never become the primary means of communication for the Chupacabra. II. Night Horror Wings: A Chupacabra can channel autumnal energy through the atavistic internal wing structures that remain in their body to focus that energy into ephemeral wings that can facilitate flight, speed, and acrobatics. Though the structure of the wings can differ between Chupas, insectile and batlike wings are by far the most common. Wings that manifest in this way will always have a blurred, dark quality, as though shaped from shadow. When the user stops channeling Autumnal energy, the wings will dissolve back into shadow as though they had never existed. Manifesting wings imparts no knowledge of flight or instruction in the use of such limbs. Because of this, most parents will spend time teaching young Chupa how to fly at some point during their childhood. Despite this, it is not uncommon for some Chupa to reach adulthood without learning this skill, and is viewed with the same kind of askance stare that admitting one had never learned how to ride a bike would. III. Hunter’s Edge: The unique physical structure of the Chupacabra make them exceptional hunters, stalkers, and lurkers. They can draw upon a deep pool of instinctual skills in these situations that supplement their physical prowess. A Chupa using this Horror can maintain absolute stillness for hours without tiring, scuttle along near vertical walls, strike with deadly accuracy, and have reflexive reactions on par with the alien response speed of insects. This basically opens the veritable treasure chest of abilities found in the insect kingdom for the Chupa to peruse. Through this Horror the relatively small Chupacabra have managed to overpower significantly larger and more imposing species. 1